Following a successful first season that pleased both fans and critics alike, iZombie was renewed for a second season and promptly descended upon San Diego Comic Con to promote all that's to come in the upcoming season which was just on the verge of beginning shooting.

In the show's press room, we sat down with cast and crew members to reflect on all the highs of season one that made it such a success, as well as got some scoops on what's to come in season 2.

Executive Producer Diane Ruggiero is still gunning for Tatiana Maslany to do a guest spot, and admits that one of her biggest fangirl loves is Wonder Woman. She teased what's to come for our favourite leading lady, Liv Moore, Ravi, and even the cheeky baddie, Blaine DeBeers.

Rose McIver was all smiles and friendliness as she recognised some familiar faces amongst the table of reporters, some of whom had been present to speak with her jut a few months prior at WonderCon. She spoke about her giddiness for Liv to play a yet-to-be disclosed prank on Ravi, how she will move forward given all the newfound drama with Major, and expressed emotionality over the Lowell arc, which proved to be tremendously impactful to viewers as well as those who worked on the show to bring that story to life.

David Anders has made a highly successful career out of playing baddies but there's something entirely refreshing and fun about his take on Blaine DeBeers. There's more of a comedic element to the dialogue and overall material, which Anders has had great fun playing. Anders ponders about the temptations Blaine may have regarding whether to enjoy being human again or to get bit/scratched again so as to reclaim the powers one harbours when endowed with Zombie abilities. 

Executive producer and show runner Rob Thomas may constantly be asked about the similarities between Liv Moore and Veronica Mars but he actually draws more inspiration from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" in creating "iZombie." Thomas expresses great satisfaction at recently learning of Joss Whedon's being a fan of the show, discusses his partnership with Diane Ruggiero, and gives us a glimpse as to what lies ahead in season 2.

Rahul Kohli assures us that there were never any serious plans to make Ravi a zombie, and that he is truly happy with the character as he is. Though he doesn't rule out Ravi ever making the switch from human to zombie, he likes being able to wisecrack and be humorous in the character. He also gives us the scoop on that most memorable line, "I don't even need to be this good-looking; it's just icing."

Malcolm Goodwin may not have been able to explore much of Clive Babineaux's Creole roots but it doesn't mean he isn't as hungry for it than ever. He also jokes about Clive's first taste of brains, says it's only a matter of time before Clive learns of Liv's secret, and was appreciative for our "juicy steak" of an idea for a possible arc for Clive in the upcoming season(s).

Season 2 of iZombie will premiere on the CW on Tuesday, October 6 at 9PM.

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A CW mid-season show, iZombie, has quickly become a fan-favourite with its quirky fun, zombie action, and strong cast. So it was little surprise when the show was one of many to stop by WonderCon to talk about what was to come on the rest of their season.

Malcolm Goodwin expressed interest in delving into more of Clive's Creole background, and gave his thoughts on Clive's belief in psychics and the partnership with Liv.

David Anders has been a fan-favourite villain for over a decade now and here he talks about the latest character, Blaine, to be added to the list. He talks about the physical preparation for the role, developing the character, finally getting to play something comedic, and coins our new favourite genre term: "zom-com-rom-dram."

Rahul Kohli says that Ravi's background won't be explored much in this season but is thrilled to be playing a character removed from the baggage of racial stereotypes and teases Ravi's getting a love interest.

Executive producer Rob Thomas shares what inspired him to adapt the show into live-action from the comics, the changes that were made in doing so, and the film that for him demonstrated that zombies could be lovable.

Executive producer Diane Ruggiero-Wright spills on her favourite character to write for, developing the zombie look for the show, takes time to fangirl about her favourite nerdy topics, and expresses her wish to get Tatiana Maslany on the show.

Rose McIver talks about maintaining the integrity of the character when getting new traits and abilities each week, Liv's blossoming partnership with Clive, and the process of finding an edible brain substance for filming.

Robert Buckley teased big things to come for Major in the rest of the season and shared his love of all things nerdy and the convention scene as a whole.

iZombie airs on Tuesdays on the CW at 9PM.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

 

VINTAGE BOOKS TO PUBLISH NEW NOVELS BASED ON THE “VERONICA MARS” TELEVSION SERIES. THE FIRST NOVEL WILL BE PUBLISHED TO COINCIDE WITH THE RELEASE OF THE UPCOMING “VERONICA MARS” FEATURE FILM.

 

Rob Thomas, the show’s creator and the film’s director, will develop and co-write the books, which will feature the characters from his popular television series.

 

NEW YORK (July 15, 2013)– Vintage Books Publisher Anne Messitte announced today that Vintage has acquired from Alloy Entertainment, a division of Warner Bros, two books in an original mystery series featuring characters from the popular “Veronica Mars” television program. The books will contain completely new stories, and will be stand-alone novels that will appeal to fans of the show, as well as general mystery readers. The plot of the first book in the series will begin where events of the upcoming “Veronica Mars” film end, and will feature an adult Veronica Mars. Rob Thomas, the show's creator (and the author of several novels prior to his television career), will develop and co-write the book series.

 

The “Veronica Mars” television series (2004 - 2007) is set in the fictional town of Neptune, California, and stars Kristen Bell as a high school (and later college) student who moonlights as a private investigator under the eye of her detective father. One of the first noir series to feature a young-adult female sleuth, the show garnered critical acclaim, and was named one of the “Best Cult TV Shows from the Past 25 Years” by Entertainment Weekly, and one of the “Best 50 TV Shows of All Time” by Empire magazine.  Such luminaries as Joss Whedon and Stephen King praised the show, and King called it: “Nancy Drew meets Philip Marlowe, and the result is pure nitro.” Since going off the air in 2007, popularity for the show has continued to grow. The cult status of the show encouraged Thomas to start a Kickstarter-fueled campaign to bring the characters back in a feature movie with much of the original cast, which he will direct. Warner Bros. will release the film “Veronica Mars” in 2014.

 

“I started my career as a novelist. Veronica Mars was first imagined as a novel. I'm thrilled that I'm going to get the opportunity to continue telling Veronica Mars stories in a form I've loved and missed,” Thomas said.

 

“Veronica Mars has always been a one-of-a-kind character, and, as a longtime fan of the series, I've always thought there is an immense amount of story left to be told. Our goal for the book series is to appeal to fans of the show, but also to appeal to mystery readers and lovers of series featuring strong, intriguing female protagonist,” said acquiring editor Andrea Robinson.  “Veronica Mars is a contemporary update to the tradition of noir crime fiction that was established by Vintage’s Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, so it's exciting that we'll also publish her here.”

 

The first book in the series is scheduled to be released in Spring 2014.  The deal was negotiated by Jodi Reamer at Writers House, LLC.

 

Vintage Books is an imprint of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, which is a division of Random House, Inc., whose parent company is Bertelsmann AG, the international media company.  Known as an industry-leading paperback publisher, its roster of authors includes Stieg Larsson, Dan Brown, Jennifer Egan, Richard Russo, Jon Krakauer, Nora Ephron, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy, Haruki Murakami, and Dave Eggers, among others.

 

Alloy Entertainment, a division of Warner Bros. Television Group, develops and produces original novels, television series, and feature films. More than seventy-five of AE’s books have been on the New York Times bestseller list, including The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars, Gossip Girl, The Clique, The Lying Game, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Private, and The Luxe. AE has successfully adapted several of its top selling books into hit television shows for broadcast across multiple networks including The CW, ABC, ABC Family, and Nickelodeon. Current Alloy Entertainment television series include Pretty Little Liars, The Vampire Diaries, Lying Game, and soon to premiere Originals, Ravenswood, and The 100.

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